


Pass Shoot Score

by easilydistractedbyfanfic



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, First Dates, Gritty, Gritty (NHL Mascot) - Freeform, Hockey, Kiss Cam AU, Matchmaking, Mentions of Real Hockey Players, NHL RPF, Philadelphia Flyers, Strangers to Lovers, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 17:21:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,269
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29439645
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/easilydistractedbyfanfic/pseuds/easilydistractedbyfanfic
Summary: Maybe a hockey game isn't the most romantic place to be on Valentine's Day, but even so, Raven's excited to be there. At least at first.But a handsome stranger, a persistent Kiss Cam, an inattentive date and a googly-eyed mascot monstrosity don't exactly add up to a recipe for love...Or do they?Based on a prompt via t100 Fic For BLM
Relationships: Jasper Jordan & John Murphy, John Murphy/Raven Reyes, Raven Reyes/Miles Ezekial Shaw (minor)
Comments: 15
Kudos: 29
Collections: The t100 Writers for BLM Initiative





	Pass Shoot Score

**Author's Note:**

> There's a fantastic collection going on with writers & creators in the t100 fandom who are accepting prompts for Black Lives Matter causes. Click on the collection linked above to read a lot more stories, and click on the following link to read more about the guidelines & how to submit a request of your own! [Check out the carrd here!](https://www.notion.so/t100-Fic-for-Black-Lives-Matter-4038a7729df4459794275b4879b31be3)
> 
> Thank you to the Anon who made a donation to a great cause and prompted this story! It allowed me to indulge myself by combining my love of Raven, Murphy, hockey, and of course - Gritty! I sincerely hope you enjoy this fic! Moodboard created for the initial prompt by the fabulous hopskipaway!
> 
> A very Happy (and socially distant!) Valentine's Day to the wonderful & loyal readers who continue to support my stories about my two favorite characters. Every comment & kudos from each of you truly makes my heart bigger! Thank you for reading!
> 
> Story title taken from a quote from the hockey movie, MIRACLE - seriously one of my fave movies ever! Go watch it!

* * *

[ ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/170152452@N02/50943588766/in/dateposted-public/)

* * *

It was a culture shock in a myriad of ways, but Raven Reyes has come to adore the tough, gritty City of Brotherly Love in the four months she’s lived in it. No one did anything here in half-measure. It was home to Rocky Balboa, the Mummer’s parade, cheesesteaks and the Broad Street Bullies. And now it was home to her. She couldn’t help but decide she fit right in, even if she didn’t think so at first. Initially Philadelphia had felt loud and lonely, the sights and sounds as unfamiliar as the accents. Raven knows better now though; views this historic location more like a reflection of herself in some ways - fearless, scrappy, loyal. It’s difficult not to root for the city and all the people in it, and she supposes that’s one of the reasons she jumped at the chance when her new boss offered her Flyers hockey tickets for tonight’s game, despite the holiday it fell on. Well, that and she loves ice hockey. Probably a given for someone from Minnesota, though usually she’s used to college hockey games instead of the NHL.

So it’s with a sense of anticipation that she looks around the massive front entrance and parking lot of the Wells Fargo Center, watching the Philly logo-clad fans stream past her as she scans the crowd for her date. A few weeks ago a guy from her gym had struck up a conversation while she was on the treadmill, and while they’d chatted about workout regimens a few times, this would be her first official date with Miles Shaw. Raven was trying not to put too much weight into today being Valentine’s Day, since she usually thought it was just a commercialized event made to force people to purchase things. But even so, it felt like it might be a nice omen for her personal life to connect with someone during the supposed celebration of love. They’d agreed to meet outside the venue since Shaw works at a law firm in New Jersey and didn’t want to risk making them late, but now that she’s here, it seems almost impossible to find anyone in all the color-coordinated masses, so she hopes her red jacket makes her stand out enough for him to spot.

Eventually they find each other, and before she knows what he intends, Shaw gives her a brief, slightly clumsy hug before gesturing towards the doors. “Let’s get out of this cold! I don’t know about you, but I’d love to grab a bite before we get to our seats.”

“That sounds good to me, too,” Raven smiles, chalking the ungainly embrace up to first-date jitters for them both. “I had a late lunch but I can’t say no to a soft pretzel.”

They make surprisingly decent time in the concessions line, and Shaw is good at mindless small talk just like she is, though she finds herself hoping that the conversation gets more interesting once they take their seats. Admittedly Shaw’s looks were what first spurred her to chat with him, but when she decided to invite him with her tonight, she figured the intermissions between periods would give them an opportunity to get to know each other better.

“I’m really looking forward to the game,” Raven shares as they navigate the huge, boisterous concourse, juggling their beers and snacks. “I went to hockey games pretty regularly in college, but I haven’t been to many NHL games. It's my first for the Flyers.”

“I’ve been to a few work schmooze-fests here before, up in the suites,” Shaw replies, “but I don’t actually like hockey.”

Raven’s heart sinks. He doesn’t like hockey? The disappointment on her face must be showing, because he bumps her arm with his elbow, almost making her lose her grip on her pretzel as he gives her a conspiratorial grin.

“It may not be my thing, but how could I say no to such a beautiful woman?”

She smiles politely at the compliment, but inside she’s surprised at how disheartened she is at his confession. When Sinclair offered her the seats for tonight’s game, he explained that their company had season tickets that usually fell to him to use as he saw fit with clients or employees, and if Raven was interested, there was a good chance she’d be able to come frequently too. It would have been nice to be joined by someone who was as enthusiastic about hockey as she was, but maybe it wouldn’t be that awkward if she was the only one leaping to her feet during an exciting breakaway or goal. Hell, next time maybe she’ll get lucky that Octavia, her boisterous neighbor from across the hall, won’t already have plans and can come with her, which was her initial plan until Octavia checked her schedule and had to say no when Raven first asked her.

Determined not to let Shaw’s lack of interest in the game ruin her evening, Raven gives herself a mental pep talk as they get to their section and locate their seats. Yeah, she’s definitely going to have to thank Sinclair again. They’re on the lower level, center ice, and only about a dozen or so rows back. They’ll have a great view of the rink and the players all night, and as Raven carefully weaves her way past a few people already in the row who patiently stand up and allow them to pass, her eyes drift over to the antics of the Flyer’s mascot, Gritty, out on the ice in all of his belligerent, orange and black glory. Chuckling under her breath as she watches him wave his arms around, his giant googly eyes going wild, she stumbles slightly as she gets to her labeled chair, knocking into the knees of the man already seated to her left. He reaches out to steady her arm - out of kindness or maybe the very real desire not to have her beer spilled on him.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she rushes to apologize, “I got distracted by Gritty.”

“Understandable. He is pretty distracting, what with all the…well, everything.”

The man’s tone is playful with a devilish smile to match, and while she couldn’t put her finger on whether it was his expression or the mischievous gleam in his blue eyes that gave it away, she knows for sure that he’s got trouble written all over him.

Shaw leans over to her then, grabbing her beer so she can get settled, her attention temporarily taken from the attractive man beside her as they drape their coats over seats and try to juggle their drinks and food. There’s never quite enough room at sporting venues if you ask her, and she ends up balancing her pretzel on a napkin on her thigh once she finally finds a place for everything.

“These seats could use some tray tables,” Shaw grumbles, making Raven happy they agree on something again.

“That’s a really big perk of the suites, alright, and a table would be great right about now. But if you want a view of the game like this, you gotta be down here. Not to mention being surrounded by this crowd.” Craning her head over her shoulder, she takes in the packed seats, the fans streaming up and down the stairs, the entertainment on the ice with the t-shirt cannons and the pulsating music as the announcer reports what the team mascot is doing in a play-by-play. It’s loud, it’s flashy, and definitely a lot of fun. At least in her eyes, though the pinched expression on Shaw’s face suggests he doesn’t feel the same.

“Too loud for you?” She wonders, not without empathy. It would be understandable if he thought so, even if she happens to like the way the music vibrates through the entire building and up through the floor into the soles of her feet so that she can feel the music as well as hear it.

“It’s not so much the noise. You have to expect that when it comes to sports. But doesn’t it seem kind of silly, all this?” Shaw gestures with his beer towards the ice, where a bunch of fans and event staff are racing around making fools of themselves to win merchandise and prizes.

“Maybe it’s a little silly,” Raven shrugs, unconvinced. “But it’s engaging the audience and building fan loyalty, and if I got the chance to go out there and win a hockey puck with a logo on it, I wouldn’t say no. Plus look at the smiles on those faces - everybody’s having a blast!”

“You got me there,” Shaw concedes, “kids and adults both look pretty happy. Okay, I’ll let your argument convince me that the pregame hoopla is a necessary ingredient for a hockey game. But there’s no way you can tell me that mascot isn’t just the worst.”

_Oh, no_. Their date has barely begun and already they aren’t syncing very well. And worse, Shaw not liking Gritty feels like a double gut-punch on top of his admission that he’s not a hockey fan either. Internally, Raven flounders for something to say, intending to tone down her indignation rather than fan the flames of disagreement between them.

“We’re just gonna have to disagree on that one, I think.”

It’s not the best attempt to avoid a debate, but it’s all she came up with, and at least she tries to inject some humor into her tone. But damn, not liking Gritty? She can't relate.

“Seriously? You like that mascot? He’s ridiculous and I’m surprised more people don’t think he’s an embarrassment.”

Shaw sounds just as incredulous that she likes Gritty as she is because he doesn’t, and the fleeting idea that maybe this sort of question should be listed in all those internet dating apps runs through her mind. Could compatibility be determined based on whether one loved a weird-looking eldritch demon? At the moment, it’s a definite possibility.

“I do like him. A lot, actually. He’s unique, feisty, and okay, it’s true he epitomizes the nickname this team has, and being a bully isn’t something anybody wants their kids to be doing. But in the context of sports rivalries and hockey being a sport where on-ice fights are a beloved part of the game, I don’t think it’s so horrible.” She watches the huge orange beast strut around the ice followed by a handful of kids trying to keep up with him, and can’t keep the smile off her face. He _is_ ridiculous, but to her that’s part of his charm.

“Come on, Shaw. You can’t tell me he isn’t a good representation of this team’s fans.”

“Thankfully you look nothing like him!”

He laughs at his joke, and Raven knows he means well, but it’s not her favorite thing that he’s brought up her appearance a couple of times. It makes her wonder if Shaw is interested in getting to know who she is as a person or if he just wants someone next to him who looks pretty.

“Hey, maybe you should check out the rage room they have here. I can’t believe their legal department even lets them have it, but I guess if you’re a fan of that mascot, you’d probably like it too,” Shaw suggests.

Raven bites her tongue again, but the way he says it doesn’t sound like he approves. Of her or the rage room he’s talking about.

“What’s the rage room?”

“Just what it sounds like. There’s a room people can buy a few minutes time in, and it’s got tv's, glass dishes, vases, breakable stuff in it. You pay your thirty bucks for however long and you can smash it all up with baseball bats or hockey sticks or whatever. Seems like injuries and lawsuits waiting to happen, if you ask me, but apparently it’s the first US sports arena with one or something like that.”

Her eyes widen at his description. That sounds awesome. She’d ask him how she could sign up for it, but it’s apparent Shaw isn’t endorsing the existence of such a room, and she supposes her trying to join in after he’s expressed his condemnation would probably fully derail their date, and the puck hasn’t even dropped yet.

“I’m sure they wear helmets and stuff,” Raven offers lamely, trying to dampen the enthusiasm she’s feeling by biting off a piece of her pretzel and chewing really slowly.

“I’m just glad I’m not on their legal team. Oh, good. Looks like the game is going to be starting soon.”

The players appear on the ice, getting their legs under them, and secretly Raven is relieved it means that she and Shaw can stop talking for a few minutes while they listen to the announcements and anthem. By the time the players line up for the opening face-off, her eagerness has returned, and seeing professional hockey in person again has been worth the wait. She almost forgot how fast-paced it could be, watching them zoom around the ice like they had wings instead of skates.

The first period passes by much too quickly, not offering many opportunities for her to talk with Shaw, and as she suspected, he’s not exactly jumping to his feet and cheering along with her, although the man to her left and his companion are zealous enough to help make up for it. At the end of the period, the Flyers lead the Washington Capitals 1-0, and Raven’s palms are a little sore from clapping so much. She and Shaw finished their snacks early on, not wanting to hold them on their laps any longer than they had to, but she’s not interested in getting more food while the game is on pause, instead hoping she can steer the date back to some positive interaction while they wait for the second period to begin.

Shaw seems to have other ideas, if the way he reaches for both of their trash hiding out under their seats is any indication.

“Raven, I had to go into work early today, and when we came in earlier, I saw one of the concession stands was selling coffee. I think I’m going to grab one. Do you want anything?”

“Oh, no, I don’t need anything, thanks. But let me come with you.” She gets to her feet to join him, but Shaw shakes his head.

“No, no. It’ll be faster if I just go myself. You just enjoy whatever they do during the break.”

_Intermission_ , she wants to correct, but she doesn’t speak up, knowing she’s being petty. But her feelings are a little hurt that he doesn’t want her to come along so they can walk together, even if Shaw is trying to be quick. They’re supposed to be on a first date - how are they supposed to get to know each other if they’re not in the same place? And on top of that, is he insinuating that the game and her company aren't stimulating enough for him, and he needs a jolt of caffeine that badly in order to stay awake? Ugh. She'll give him the benefit of the doubt, but it doesn't make her feel great about their date so far.

“Hope the line won’t be too long,” she offers, watching as he excuses himself to the person on his other side and begins to leave the row.

Sighing, she slides back into her seat. Maybe she should have asked for another beer, or at least figured out that she could use another one before she lost the chance to go with him. Her eyes flick to the jumbotron high over the middle of the ice rink. It’s showing various spectators seated next to each other with a heart frame around them, for Valentine’s Day, she supposes, and whenever one of the pairs on the camera kiss, the stands erupt with cheers and applause. At the moment, Raven’s willing to view it as a sweet tradition, but if her own Valentine’s Day continues to go downhill, she might be adjusting her viewpoint.

“So you know Sinclair then?”

Startled, she turns away from the big screen to the man with the blue eyes on her left, surprised to hear her boss’s name from a stranger.

“Yeah, that’s my boss.”

“You haven’t worked with him very long, I'd guess.”

“What makes you say that?” And how does _he_ know?

The man shrugs. “It’s usually Sinclair who comes to the games the most, but I know he passes tickets to his employees sometimes. Haven’t seen you here before though.”

“No, this is the first time he offered me the seats.”

“I figured. Sinclair’s a good guy - he’s had these seats a few years now, so I usually end up sitting next to him. My family has been season ticket holders for the Flyers for a long time, so I’m here just about every home game.” He jerks his chin towards his friend. “I’m Murphy, by the way. Well, John Murphy if you want to be technical. But nobody calls me that. And he’s Jasper.”

“Hey,” the other man nods, his mouth full of nachos.

“I’m Raven Reyes,” she informs them, offering her hand to Murphy. His palm is warm and firm when he clasps hers in return. He has a nice handshake. “Now that Sinclair knows I’m interested, hopefully I’ll get to come more often.”

Murphy’s eyes flash with that same devilish spark she saw when she first looked at him. “I can put in a good word if you want. There’s another game later this week. The other something-something-space-engineering-people don’t seem to know the game as well as you and Sinclair do. It’s more fun to sit next to someone who knows when to yell at the ref.”

She laughs at the description of her job and then feels a little chagrined at the reminder of how she’d been annoyed with a high-sticking call early in the game, shouting out how the ref must be blind.

“I might’ve gotten a little carried away with that ref,” she admits, “but for future reference, I work in aeronautical telemetry, not space engineering.” She uses her fingers to air-quote the term he used.

“I don’t know what that is,” Murphy grins.

“No one does, but it’s not nearly as fancy as it sounds. I help design systems that monitor data from on-board instruments of military and commercial flight test missions. And rocketry too - launch vehicles are pretty fun.”

“You’re not making it sound any less fancy, in case you’re wondering.” Murphy looks as though he wants to continue, but his friend leans over him to tap Raven’s knee, interrupting whatever was going to be said.

“Hey. I don’t think your friend is enjoying the game,” Jasper informs her.

Great. She’s not the only one who’s noticed.

“Yeah, I don’t think hockey is his thing,” Raven agrees, uncertain what else to say about it.

“That’s too bad.”

Jasper sounds incredibly bummed out for her, making her smile. It is too bad, but the thing is… she’s having a good time even with Shaw’s current absence. And with him gone, maybe these two can fill her in on something she’s still wondering about.

“So do either one of you know anything about the rage room thing they have here?”

“Oh, it’s fantastic!” Jasper chimes in immediately, his delight evident. “It’s called The Disassembly Room.”

“It is pretty awesome,” Murphy adds. “You’re probably too late for tonight though. If you want to try it, you should sign up for a time slot early. They usually open some slots online before the game, but others you can only reserve in person. Everything tends to get booked by the first intermission.”

“How much stuff do you get to break?”

“Everything that’s in there. You can slash stuff, hack it to bits, throw it, slam it - whatever you want. People say it’s cathartic and all that, but it’s tough not to feel like a kid in a candy store when you have a baseball bat in your hand and a bunch of stuff to demolish in front of you.”

“That does sound good,” Raven mumbles, caught up in the idea of it. “I’m definitely going to sign up for that if I get to attend another game. Do you know if you can…” she trails off her question, suddenly sidetracked by the people in the rows in front of them turning their heads to look in their direction.

Confused, she glances behind her, only to see people waving and looking up towards the ceiling. Her gaze follows their line of sight and lands on the jumbotron, immediately confronted with her own giant image. Well, technically her and Murphy, considering there’s a shot of the two of them framed in a big red heart, obviously a part of the kiss-cam antics that she’d been watching herself not long ago.

“Aww, look!” Jasper yells, waving his arm behind Murphy’s head to give him rabbit ears. “You guys have to kiss!”

Murphy’s unfairly long-lashed blue eyes meet hers, a challenging sparkle in them, and Raven knows in that exact moment that if she weren’t at this game with a date, she’d absolutely kiss him, the urge to lean in and knock him for a loop undeniably strong. But she _is_ here on a date, even if he’s not actually sitting next to her at the moment. Maybe Shaw isn’t watching any of the hundreds of tv monitors near the concessions either, but she still shouldn’t kiss a stranger just because of a silly camera being on them, right? No matter how intriguing the idea is, now that she's considering it.

A little more nervously than she’d like, Raven forces a laugh. It sounds fake to her ears, but neither Murphy nor Jasper would know that, so she goes with it.

“No, sorry,” she says, giving a weird, tucked-in version of jazz hands like she doesn’t want anyone getting closer to her. She shakes her head for good measure and the crowd starts to turn on her, booing and stomping their feet. A broken sounding, unhappy air-horn blares from the ice and Raven looks over to see Gritty himself holding it, and the mascot somehow manages to appear disapproving even though he can’t change his expression. Gritty shakes his head sadly at her and turns his back, and it almost feels like the time she had to give Sinclair bad news about a prototype he’d assigned to her. She feels like she’s let down someone important and it sucks.

“Wow,” Murphy draws out the word, "you really pissed off Gritty.”

Raven whirls her head to look at him, her dark hair flying with the quick movement. “I know, right? Damn, how did he manage to look so mad at me when he can’t even move his mouth?”

Jasper stares at her pitifully. “He doesn’t react like that a lot.”

Wonderful. Her date has potentially ditched her and she’s upset the team mascot because she didn’t participate in the kiss cam. Even though she wanted to. Whatever. This Valentine’s Day is not turning out at all like she expected, and whether it’s to gain a little sympathy or vent, she isn’t sure, but she opens her mouth and says so.

“This is not what I planned for my Valentine’s Day, for what it’s worth. I didn’t know my date didn’t like hockey, and I sure didn’t anticipate the team mascot would be disappointed with me because I didn’t kiss the stranger sitting one chair over!”

“Sometimes that’s just how the day goes,” Jasper shrugs, in such a world-weary way that Raven bursts into laughter despite herself and even Murphy joins in.

Jasper seems slightly confused but then his attention is caught by something out of Raven’s view.

“Oh, hey, Murphy! There’s Pike!”

“Good timing,” she hears Murphy say, and then he turns to her once more.

“You look like you could use another. Do you think your non-hockey-loving date wants a beer?”

“What? No, he’s getting coffee, so I don’t think so. Why?”

“Pike’s coming.” Murphy nods towards a man carrying a cooler full of beers a few rows over. “He’s retired from his main job, and even though he’s set for life, he likes hockey and interacting with the crowd, so he works with the concession stands during home games. The man could probably buy a suite if he wanted, but that’s who he is, I guess. Anyway, we have a standing order for him to come over anytime he’s near this section. I’ll get you another, since it was my role as the stranger sitting one chair over who helped wreck your Valentine’s Day.”

He says it with a straight face, but there’s sarcasm laced all through his remarks anyway, and damn her for it but she finds it incredibly appealing. She needs to take a serious look at why she’s attracted to smart-asses, but in the meantime, she really could use another drink, and since she took the subway earlier, driving isn’t an issue.

“That would be nice, thank you.” It comes out more primly than she intends, but if anything Murphy seems to be amused by her response. In that brief moment they assess each other, her eyes pinned to his, unable to look away. Whether he lets her read him or she just intuitively knows, realization seeps in that he was disappointed that she didn’t kiss him too. _Oh_.

Abruptly the moment ends as Murphy focuses on something Jasper is saying, leaving Raven to her thoughts while they flag the man named Pike down. She doesn’t get long to consider what to do when you’re on a date with one person and find yourself attracted to someone else, because Shaw is finally shuffling past all the people in their row again, a large cup of coffee in his hand.

“Hey,” he smiles. “That took longer than I thought, but there’s still a few minutes left of the break, at least. Did I miss anything fun?”

That feels like a loaded question she has no interest in answering, so she skirts around it. “Nope, I was just talking to our neighbors to the left. They’re getting beers delivered to the seats - do you want one?”

Shaw lifts his coffee and takes a careful sip. “Nah, I’m set. But you have one if you want.”

Raven doesn’t recall asking his permission, silently counting to five in her head before answering. “Yeah, I’m going to. Were the lines long?”

The question launches him into something of a story, so she listens patiently, and maybe her other seat-mate is too, because as soon as Shaw finishes speaking and before Raven can open her mouth to say anything, Murphy brushes her hand with his, sending a jolt of awareness through her. He passes her a beer as soon as she looks at him, and the smile he gives her is downright wicked when he taps his beer to hers.

“Happy Valentine’s Day,” he toasts, and she’s torn between wanting to punch him in the bicep or kissing that smug look right off him. Both options would probably work well, honestly.

She doesn’t give in to either urge, instead introducing the two men, her lips set in a firm line. “Miles Shaw, this is Murphy and Jasper. They kept me company while you were gone.”

“Great,” Shaw says, leaning forward to smile farther down the row. “Glad Raven wasn’t lonely.”

“Just consider us the welcoming committee of section one-thirteen,” Murphy quips, and Raven and Jasper both roll their eyes.

“They know my boss, Mr. Sinclair,” she explains, attempting to keep the conversation going.

"Great," Shaw repeats, seemingly more interested in drinking his coffee than being courteous.

“Do you work in _aeronautical telemetry_ too?”

Raven’s positive Murphy’s question sounds perfectly innocent to Shaw, but she knows better. He put special emphasis on her field for her sake, and it’s a struggle to keep her face straight, especially when Shaw answers.

“I thought Raven was some kind of engineer? Like for space? But no, we don’t work together. I’m an attorney.”

“Ohhhh,” Jasper drawls, like he’s pieced things together. Honestly he might not be wrong.

“I’m not really an engineer, but yes, sometimes I do things for space.” Maybe it’s easier just to give in, Raven figures, her exasperation high as she refuses to meet Murphy's gaze because she just _knows_ she won't be able to control her laughter if she does.

“Hey, they’re coming back on the ice,” Jasper points. “I’m gonna pay attention to Van Riemsdyk more, see if he’s improved since the last string of away games.”

“Yeah, yeah, local kid makes good and all, but I swear this team hasn’t had a decent left winger since LeClair.”

“Oh god, don’t start that again,” Jasper whines at Murphy, then leans in to whisper conspiratorially to Raven. “He can’t let go of the good old days, but you can’t really blame him when the team hasn’t been everything it could be. His butt has been warming these seats since he was a kid coming to games with his dad, so now he has _opinions_.”

“Whatever,” Murphy mumbles, but it’s obvious it’s a fond dismissal, and Raven wonders how long Jasper and Murphy have been friends. From the looks of things, it's been a long time.

The puck drops and the second period gets underway with a huge check to the boards coming just a few minutes in, sending most of the crowd, including Raven, Murphy and Jasper, to their feet. Though they’ve been sitting somewhat pressed against each other the whole game so far simply because of the proximity of their seats, Raven notices Murphy seems to be more in her personal bubble this period, his hip bumping hers, or their arms rubbing up against each other whenever they stand. She does nothing to discourage the deliberate movements even though she feels a few twinges of guilt. It’s not easy to converse during the game when she wants to pay attention to the action on the ice, but she forces herself to make a better effort with Shaw. Maybe they don’t have hockey in common, but that doesn’t mean they won’t like other things about each other, even if she’s well aware she’d be having more fun if Shaw wasn’t at the game at all. She really should’ve just brought Octavia, if only her new friend hadn’t had to work.

The period goes down to the wire with the Capitals playing good defense and no goals scored even with a power play for each team, but then Provorov gets a buzzer beater for the Flyers and the crowd goes insane. The noise is deafening but there’s no doubt it’s exciting, and Raven laughingly pulls Shaw to his feet as everyone wiggles and jumps and does the most outrageous dances as the music and shouts thunder through the entire building. He does make an effort to share her exuberance when he sees her joining in the fun, but it’s hard not to turn towards Murphy, knowing he really feels it like she does, and doesn’t have to pretend. There’s just something about being caught up in a stadium filled with people who are all focused on the same thing, letting that shared experience fill you up until you’re bursting with it. Raven wonders if Shaw has ever felt it, that magic that can only come when you’re surrounded by thousands of people. Somehow she doesn’t think so.

Players skate off the ice as the last intermission begins, the Flyers leading the Caps 2-0, and Raven takes the last few sips of her beer, her throat dry from cheering. If her thigh grazes Murphy’s more than necessary when she sinks back into her seat, no one knows it but them, and it’s not a secret she’ll be revealing - except maybe to a select girlfriend or two later, once she’s back at home.

The thought of being home later has her calculating whether she should risk trying to get Murphy’s number or give him hers while Shaw is present, or if she should just cross her fingers that Sinclair offers her another set of tickets soon. From what Murphy has said, the chances are high that he’ll be here the next time she is, but the option to wait doesn’t sit well in the slightest. In her experience, the kind of spark that’s been ignited by Murphy is rare and she’s not about to let it burn out, but she has to temper her behavior because she really doesn’t want to hurt Shaw’s feelings, even if she’s coming to the conclusion that they just aren’t a good match. Shaw may not be everything she’d built up in her mind, but that doesn’t mean he deserves to be summarily dismissed in the middle of a hockey game that he didn’t really even want to come to.

She turns towards him, determination renewed to find common ground. On the off chance that he asks her for another date, it’ll be easier to let him down gently if she’s made a serious effort, she tells herself. And maybe that’ll help her feel less guilty about the way she subconsciously shifts in Murphy’s direction when she's not actively thinking about her body language. Concluding that food is usually a safe topic, Raven starts asking Shaw about his favorite restaurants in the city, and it goes well for a few minutes until Shaw’s phone starts to vibrate in his pocket.

“I have to take this,” he says, eyes on the screen.

“Work keeping you hopping, huh?” Raven asks, commiserating. Shaw’s mentioned he’s on call a lot.

“What? Oh, no, no. It’s not work. It’s my personal trainer. I’ve been meaning to discuss some changes to my workouts I want to make. I won’t be too long.”

At that he pushes the screen and starts a hushed discussion, leaving Raven feeling rather speechless. First she’s abandoned for coffee and now a personal trainer? On a first date? On Valentine’s Day? Maybe she has no reason to feel guilty that she’s lusting over the guy on the other side of her after all…And maybe it’s appropriate that he’s on her left considering that’s the side the figurative devil is supposed to sit on, although in this case, she highly doubts there’s an angel on her right shoulder to balance him out. Still, there’s no doubt that the person on her left tempts her, and with Shaw occupied, she gives in to the impulse to focus on him again, anticipation coursing through her.

He and Jasper are talking to a guy in the row behind him, and as Raven eavesdrops, the guy and a few of his companions get up, talking about getting drinks, leaving quite a few seats unoccupied. Murphy looks over at her when he turns back around, his gaze taking in Shaw who’s clearly engrossed in his phone call, and Murphy shakes his head, though he doesn’t sound sorry at all.

“Date not getting any better, huh?”

“What gave it away?”

He grins at her sass, and Jasper pipes up from beside him.

“Dating lawyers is almost always a mistake.”

Jasper looks like the last person on Earth who’d date a lawyer to begin with, but he warns her like he means it. She wonders what the story is behind that comment, but when she flicks her eyes to Shaw again, she’s inclined to believe Jasper might be a very wise man.

“We met at my gym. It was probably doomed from the start, but I don’t know a lot of people in the city yet. Mostly Sinclair and a few people at my work. Oh, and my crazy neighbor, Octavia. Who in hindsight, I really should have brought with me tonight, but she couldn’t come. I think she would get along with you guys. Not to mention she’d have been a better date, I bet.”

Murphy coughs on his sip of beer and she hears Jasper mumbling an expletive-filled version of _you’ve got to be kidding me_.

“There’s gotta be plenty of crazy Octavia’s in Philly,” Murphy says, his tone skeptical, “but by any chance are you talking about Octavia Blake?”

“Yes, that’s my neighbor!”

Delighted at the coincidence, she’s confused when Jasper bursts into near-hysterical laughter.

“He’s laughing for a lot of reasons,” Murphy explains. “But mostly because Octavia went to high school with us and we’re all still friends. So this means you’re the new neighbor she’s mentioned.” His eyes narrow thoughtfully, and she thinks his gaze drops to her mouth but it happens so fast she can't be sure. “Any chance she knew you were coming to this game?”

“She did, because I asked her to come with me tonight. I thought we’d have fun hanging out. But she said she had to work, so I asked Shaw instead. And you can see how that’s going.”

Jasper is practically wheezing, he’s laughing so hard. “You, you...you asked Octavia to tonight’s game?” he clutches his stomach like he’s in pain, doubled over in his chair. “And she said she had to work?” He tries to catch his breath again, his eyes darting between her and Murphy. “You guys are so set up!”

“I don’t get what’s so funny,” she tells Murphy. “What does he mean by us being set up?”

“Just call it an inside joke. I have a feeling Octavia might fill you in soon, since I’m guessing you don’t know what she does for a living. But aside from all that, looks like we have multiple people in common. One way or another, you and I were going to meet anyway.”

“Octavia said she’s in customer service,” Raven answers absently, sidetracked by Murphy’s comment that they were going to meet one way or another. It’s probably true, what with her company having season tickets next to his, and him being friends with her neighbor, who was practically her only girlfriend so far in Philly. Octavia had even mentioned a party next weekend, and maybe they would have run into Octavia's high school friends there. She likes the potential of it, that if things hadn’t worked out this time around, she’d have gotten more chances to meet Murphy.

“Customer service!” Jasper sputters, wiping his eyes. “God, Octavia’s the best!”

She feels like she’s missing something important, a key piece of the puzzle that Jasper finds so hilarious, but then the crowd around them starts to chant “Kiss! Kiss!” and the noise filters into her brain. Raven looks around, eager to see which couple near their section has been selected this time, but when she stares up at the jumbotron once more, damned if it isn’t once again zoomed in on her and Murphy.

When her eyes dart to Shaw to see his reaction, he doesn’t seem aware of anything that’s going on, still on the phone with his trainer, a finger in his other ear like he’d rather be anywhere but next to her and at a hockey game.

“I am on a date with someone else,” Raven enunciates, teeth clenched as she spits out each syllable. The words are mostly intended for whoever keeps putting them on the kiss cam, and maybe also because she’s trying to convince herself to behave, but of course only Murphy hears her.

He lifts his shoulders in a careless shrug. “So? I’m on a date with Jasper.”

“You are not!” she hisses, but he only grins wider and leans in, resting his elbow on their shared armrest, making it obvious to anyone watching that he’s interested in kissing her.

The crowd chants louder but Raven still doesn’t act. At this point, it doesn’t seem like Shaw will even notice if she starts giving Murphy a lap dance, so she supposes a brief smooch on the jumbotron kiss cam isn’t going to condemn her to hell for bad manners. She’s close to giving in, helped along by the way Murphy wraps his fingers around her wrist and rubs his thumb over her throbbing pulse point. The spark between them is suddenly a raging fire, but the nagging thought of hurting Shaw’s feelings continues to pull at her and she hesitates.

But then the most unexpected thing happens. Behind them, in the row that’s been partially vacated by the guys Murphy and Jasper were talking to, the immense orange form of Gritty stomps in, looming over them, his hands on his hips as he shakes his head at Raven and then perches his butt precariously on the edge of a seat so his furry orange face can gaze sternly at them both.

Gritty taps his finger against his wrist, like he’s telling her she’s out of time. Then he unexpectedly and very gently puts one giant hand on her head and one on Murphy’s, softly pushing them towards one another. She could resist if she wanted to - there’s hardly any pressure behind Gritty’s fingers - but she doesn’t want to. She didn’t kiss Murphy the first time they were on the kiss cam, and the second time, right before Gritty showed up, she might’ve still talked herself out of it. Now though, it feels like the team mascot has given her an excuse to do what she wanted from the start, so she does exactly that, her mouth sliding over Murphy’s eagerly, not interested in the brief peck she initially considered. No, she wants a _real_ kiss, so she makes her intentions obvious, nipping his bottom lip with her teeth so he understands she doesn’t want chaste, and lucky for her Murphy’s a quick study, the kiss instantly transitioning into something a bit more racy than the kiss cam might have expected.

At some point Gritty must have taken his hands away from them both, because now those fingers tap her head once more, this time more of a demand, and she reluctantly pulls away from Murphy, the sound of the crowd cheering registering dully in her ears. Jasper seems to be laughing again as she catches a glimpse of him from the corner of her eye, but mostly her attention flickers between Murphy and Gritty, trying to make sense of what’s just happened. For his part, Murphy looks just astonished as she feels, the two of them uncertain what to do next.

Gritty decides for them, drawing a big imaginary heart in the air before clapping his hands and jiggling his belly in approval, giving Raven one last affectionate pat on the head before he spins and dances back out of the aisle, his work obviously complete as fans high-five him and laugh at his antics. She stares after him, feeling somewhat stunned from both the kiss and the entirely strange scenario that led to it. Jasper pushes a fresh beer into her hands from who-knows-where and she takes a gulp, needing something to divert her or she might do something drastic, like throw herself at Murphy again.

“I knew you wanted to kiss me,” Murphy teases, his voice jolting her back to the present. His hair is out of place, a thrill sweeping over her as she realizes that’s likely her fault.

“Please. Like you felt any different.” She softens her words with a grin and the two of them might’ve spent the rest of the game staring shamelessly at each other if not for Jasper.

“Man, Octavia must be cackling upstairs! Her hands are all over this stunt! Let’s wait for her after the game - I bet she’ll come down to rub your faces in it!”

“Jasper, what _are_ you talking about?” Raven asks, her impatience evident because none of this makes sense.

“Octavia’s in customer service, alright - _Flyers_ customer service! She’s partly in charge of the fan services group or whatever - she’s at every home game, watching the monitors, planning fan interactions with Gritty, you name it. She hasn’t put either of us on the kiss cam before, but she knows one of us is usually sitting here, so we get our faces up on the jumbotron pretty often.”

So that’s why Jasper thought it was so hysterical that Octavia couldn’t come to the game - she didn’t lie about having to work, but she’s working _here_. And Octavia knows Raven _and_ Murphy and Jasper. Yeah, if she knows anything about her crazy neighbor, she’s sure Octavia would have jumped at the chance to play a prank on her friends if the opportunity presented itself.

“If it makes you feel any better,” Murphy interjects, “unless you told her the seat numbers on your tickets, I don’t think she could have planned this beforehand.”

“No, I didn’t mention anything,” Raven murmurs. “I guess this was just coincidence and when she saw us on the monitor sitting next to each other, she had to take advantage.”

“It’s like a collision of Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day all meshed together,” Jasper muses, gazing into his beer as he trails off, leaving Raven with a disturbing mental image of a half-cupid, half-leprechaun hybrid shooting her with an arrow.

Actually, as weird as that is, maybe Jasper is on to something, because her Valentine’s Day has definitely taken a sharp spike upwards even with a disastrous first date on her hands.

“I don’t know about you,” Murphy says, reaching for her hand and squeezing her fingers in his, “but lucky coincidence or not, my Valentine’s Day definitely got better when you sat down. And look, we still have almost six whole minutes before the third period starts.”

“I was just thinking how my Valentine’s Day is going much better than initially expected too,” Raven agrees, feeling warm all over at the compliment as well as the way her hand feels in his. “And six minutes should be enough time for me to ditch Shaw and kiss you again with whatever’s left over.”

“Hurry up then,” he urges her, his eyes _definitely_ going to her lips this time, and she turns away from him quickly, before she can change her mind and skip the ditching Shaw portion of her to-do list, but she makes sure to keep a tight connection with Murphy's fingers.

A part of her honestly expects Shaw to already be gone, so she’s a bit dumbfounded to see him still on the phone, hunched over in his seat, oblivious to the world. She taps him on the arm and it takes him a moment before he looks over at her, his eyes widening like he really did forget all about her.

“Raven, oh jeez, sorry! I really got into this discussion with Diyoza about how to increase my squat count.”

“You know what, that’s really okay,” she assures him. “But I think we both can finally agree on something, and that’s that this date isn’t going well. It’s my fault too, for the record, but you have to admit that it _is_ pretty unusual for one person not to notice when their date starts kissing someone else.”

Shaw mutters a hasty _just a second_ into the phone, his expression quizzical. She lifts up her hand, the one holding onto Murphy, and does her best to explain.

“Murphy and I ended up on the kiss cam together when you got coffee. I didn’t kiss him then, since I was here with you. While you were on the phone, the kiss cam and Gritty gave us another chance. I almost missed out on it because I thought I was being rude to you, but the thing is - you and I are not compatible and I think we both know that based on the way this date has gone.”

“You kissed the guy sitting next to you on the kiss cam and I didn’t even notice?”

“Afraid so.”

“Wow. I really have been a crappy date, haven’t I?” Shaw asks.

“I think we’ll _both_ have an awful first date story to tell in the future,” she admits, although hers for sure has a fantastic ending.

“So, I’m guessing that means you won’t be mad if I just head out then, since we arrived separately?”

“Nope, I won’t be mad.”

Shaw picks up the phone again, this time speaking a loud _one more minute_ into the mouthpiece as he stands and gathers his coat.

“In that case, I’ll see you at the gym, Raven. Sorry this didn’t work out.”

Raven doesn’t need to watch him leave, her eyes going right to the jumbotron to see how much time she has left before the players return to the ice.

“Plenty of time,” Murphy promises, his grip on her hand pulling her closer. “I know this sounds insensitive of me, but I’m really glad your Valentine’s date sucked.”

“I don’t know, seems to have worked out pretty well for me in the end. This might be my favorite Valentine’s Day yet.”

“Only _might be_ your favorite, huh? Lemme see what I can do to change that into a definitely.”

She’s smiling when they kiss, and she’s smiling when they break apart to watch the third period, her hand still in his. And she smiles even more when the game ends and the Flyers win after scoring another goal, and the three of them wait for Octavia, who definitely wants to gloat about setting them up on the kiss cam as well as sending Gritty to seal the deal. And she’s absolutely still smiling when Murphy makes sure she gets back home safely, kissing her goodnight at her apartment door, their hands clasped until the very last second.

_Definitely_ her favorite Valentine’s Day.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I'd love to hear what you think! Happy Valentine's Day!  
> PS - this fic is Murven story #52! One for every week of the year!   
> A whole deck of Murven stories like a stack of cards! LOLOL!


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